4 Website Testing Mistakes to Avoid

You’ve heard over and over again how important testing is if you want to improve online conversion. But maybe testing has proven to be a mixed bag for you.

It can be discouraging if your first few tests flopped altogether or maybe they only nudged your conversion rate up by half a percent.

But don’t throw in the towel yet. If your testing strategy isn’t working, then step back and see whether you’re guilty of any of these testing mistakes:

1. You don’t back up your instincts with solid data

Guessing and testing don’t go well together. Gut instincts are good, and can be valuable in testing. But back your hunches up with solid data gathering. Analytics first, then testing. Watch to see where problem areas occur and build a methodical testing strategy to improve online conversion based on data, not guesses.

2. You’re ignoring the test results in favor of someone’s opinion.

Testing data gives you cold, hard facts, but sometimes you’re feeling pressure from higher-ups to do something different. Maybe the test-winning design doesn’t “look right” or “feel right” or “match our brand objectives.” But if you ignore the test results, you’re walking away from a winning page and increased revenue. Build a culture within your business that takes testing seriously and that acts on the results, not opinions.

3. You stop testing because results have stalled out

Just because your last few tests haven’t improved conversion, doesn’t mean you can quit testing. It means that your current design has reached a state of equilibrium and it’s going to be difficult to coax anymore conversions out of it. That’s when it’s time to get creative and consider a larger-scale redesign. Sometimes, a page has just done all it can do and in order to improve online conversion, you’re going to need to regroup.

4. You’re aiming too low.

Tiny tweaks will only take you so far. Yes, tweaking things like color and font and button size can all give you small conversion increases, but if those are the only changes you’ll ever make, you may be getting too excited over tiny victories. Aim higher and focus on the movers and shakers of conversion—like your headline and call to action…maybe your even your offer. And if necessary, do a complete design overhaul.

Testing gives you the resources you need to improve online conversion with actual data, not hunches.

Take the time to evaluate your testing strategy. If it’s not working for you, regroup and consider broadening your scope, readjusting your goals, and giving more precedence to the data.